New Name for Unaccredited University Salutes Wyoming Governor

Kennedy-Western University, an unaccredited institution that gives students credit for “life experience,” is changing its name, effective January 1, to Warren National University, in honor of Francis E. Warren, the first governor of Wyoming, where the institution is based.

Why the name change? A Kennedy-Western news release says the change is the result of a “strategic initiative” that includes “instituting initiatives to introduce new resources to provide the best possible program for the online learner” –- though that does little to clear up the matter.

The announcement also assures students that the change “will in no way” affect “the validity of your degree” — even though a number of states refuse to recognize Kennedy-Western diplomas.

Kennedy-Western, which has been based in Idaho and California, was the among the subjects of an investigation into diploma mills by the General Accounting Office in 2004. Paul Saltman, the founder of Kennedy-Western -– or, rather, Warren National -– has always vigorously denied that the institution is a diploma mill and has taken legal action to defend its reputation.